Mechanical color filter device for use in sequential television systems



Dec. l, 1953 Filed Dec. 22, 1950 A. V. BEDFORD MECHANICAL COLOR FILTER DEVICE FOR USE IN SEQUENTIAL. TELEVISION SYSTEMS 2 Sheets-Smael l Mar/mmv@ Hillllll|||lllllllillll|lllllllllll|Illlllllll|||ll|||Illllllllll|l|l|||||lllllllllllllllllllllll Smmmmz Illl|I|l|lllllllllllII|lIlllllllIllllll|lIlIllllll||||IlllllllllllllllllllllllIIIIIIIIIIIIII! mmm llllllllllllllllllllllllllIlIlIlIUIlllllllIl|IlIlIIIlll|IllllllllllllllllllllllllI lllllllIlllllllllllIllllll!IlllIllIllllllllllllllllllllllIllllllllllllIllllllllll- Mmmm ATTO RNEY Dec. l, 1953 Filed Dec. 22,' 1950 2 Sheets-Sheer 2 INVENTOR A v BEDFORD 2,661,391

MECHANICAL CLO FILTER DEVICE FOR USE IN SEQUENTIAI.. TELEVISION SYSTEMS Bld durd TTORNEY Patented Dec. l, 1953 2,661,391 MECHANICAL CoLoR FILTER DEVICE Fon USE IN SEQUENTIAL TEMS Alda V'. Bedford, Princeton,

TELEVISION SYS- N. J.. assigner to Radio Corporation of America, a corporation of Delaware Application December 2,2, 1950, Serial No.

* Claims. (Cl. 17 85.4)

This invention relates to the sequential type color television systems and more particularly to mechanically operated color nlter devices used in combination with such systems.

The invention will be illustrated for a conventional tri-color television system using iield sequential red, green and blue colored image components, but it is equally adapted to any other similar form of multi-color television system, or the like. in such systems, there are transmitted and received a series of signals representing substantially black and white image portions which sequentially carry the intelligence corresponding to color components of the original scene. At the receiver, the original multi-color picture is reproduced upon a fluorescent screen by iield sequential presentation of the component color image portions. By interspersing appropriate Color iilters between the viewer and the screen in synchronism with the sequentially transmitted iields the reproduced composite images will appear in substantially their original colors.

Rotating disk type color iilter systems have heretofore been used, as the usual color filter arrangement, but such disk iilters are limited in size for use with small screen television systems. The diameter of a rotating disk must be at least twice the screen or image diameter, thus making a bulky and unsightly addition to the television receiver. A filter system, substantially the same size as the screen, which may be driven by a motor hidden within the cabinet, and one which is not limited by the tube size would be desirable in preference to a rotating disk.

There has been proposed, for the purpose of overcoming the aforementioned shortcomings, a iilter arrangement employing two relatively movable lter members. Thus, one member comprises a series of color nlter elements laid down in a given pattern, and the other member comprises, a corresponding mask so arranged that a slight movement of the mask with respect to the iilter elements results in the transmission of light through selected lter elements and restricted within bands corresponding to the different selected component colors. This provides for a rapid succession of diiierently colored images without extensive mechanical motion. Such an arrangement is shown and` described in te U. patent to George C. Sziklai, 2,457,415.

The copending application of A. V. Bedford, Ser. No. r(82,104, iiled October 25, 1947, which issued as U. S. Patent 2,692,854 on July 8, 1952, in addition proposes to improve the Sziklai .ar-

rangement by providing a mask and color iilter with associated means causing continuous rela,- tive motion between the mask and color filter for providing low eiiective momentum. Complex oscillatory motion, having both translational and rotational components, is provided without the formerly required fast acceleration for such a` filter at the instant of changing color elds.

The presentinvention involving a system havine a different mode of operation, relates to improvements in both the above-mentioned types of color iilters. In this system also, the color ilterelements and a portion of the mask move 4 Further objects and advantages of the invention will be made clear to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which: y Figure i is a side view, partially in section, of an embodiment of the invention, as associated with a cathode ray tube;

Figure 2 is a constructed in and,

Referring in particular to Figure 1, there is shown an electron beam scanning tube or kinescope II. Tube II may alternatively be a transmitting tube such as the image orthicon, but it is to be recognized that any suitable image'reproducing or scanning means either at a receiver or transmitter may be used, and the present embodiment is for purposes of illustration rather than limitation.

Both a movable mask 3 and an associated fixed color filter is mounted near the face of the kinescope II. To give wide angle color viewing the mask 3 and color filter 5 should be mounted as close to each other as possible. They may, for example, be touching each other or may be separated by a thin film of lubricant. As a practical embodiment, the mask 3 and the color filter 5 may both be mounted photographically as gelatin film facings upon corresponding transparent carrier surfaces 4 and 6.

In the form of the invention shown, elements of the mask 3 are made relatively movable with respect to the fixed color filter 5. Obviously the mask 3 may be fixed and the filter elements 5 may be made relatively movable, if desired. Both the mask 3 and the color filter 5 may be movable, also, but in any case the relative motion between the mask 3 and filter would be identical for any given type of operation, and the illustrated form is preferred because of its simplicity. For purposes of clarity, the operation of this invention will be explained only in connection with the embodiment illustrated in Figure l, wherein the filter 5 is fixed and the mask 3 is movable.

Color filter 5, as shown in Figure 3, consists of a plurality of narrow strips of different selected component color filter elements arranged sequentially in recurring color groups to provide a fixed pattern of blue, red and green strips. Although in practice the color filter elements are small enough to resolve into a complete image and be indistinguishable by the unaided human eye at the optimum picture viewing distance of a few feet, for the purpose of illustration they have been shown somewhat enlarged.

The mask 3, as more clearly shown in Figure 2, consists of a grating having T which substantially correspond in size, shape and spacing with any one selected component color element of the filter 5. The configuration of these elements is not restricted to lines, but may have other shapes, such as the dot structure shown in British Patent 589,345. However, lines are easy to construct and are entirely adequate for operation under most conditions. Operation of the invention will be made more clear,

therefore, in confining the description to masks and filters comprising a series of parallel line sections. Opaque sections O which are substantially of twice the width of a single color section are alternately interspersed with the transparent sections of the mask 3.

Images are reproduced upon the iiuorescent screen IIJ of the cathode ray tube Il by progressive scanning of an electron beam in accordance with a scanning waveform supplied by the scanning generator I2 to the deflection yoke i3. A synchronization pulse generator I4 is coupled to the scanning generator I2 as well as a motivating means I'I for the mechanical color filter of this invention. Thus, the presentation of different color elements in front of the fluorescent screen It may be synchronized with the image scanning to provide images in substantially their natural color. This is accomplished by, means for stretching the mask 3 in an. irregular osciltransparent sections latory motion to expose diiferent elements of the color filter 5 with respect to lthe transparent mask sections T of the mask 3 such that in each cycle of the motion each component color is traversed in iield sequential fashion along the entire length of the filter 5.

The color lter 5 is mounted in a fixed position in front of the screen II), and the mask 3 is connected with a mechanism for stretching it in accordance with a predetermined pattern. Thus, the mask 3 is mounted upon a base plate 4 of plastic, silicone rubber, glass or other flexible transparent body having a modulus of elasticity such that the entire sheet may be stretched for a distance corresponding to the width of at least three color sections without exceeding the elastic limit.

Referring now to both Figures l and 2, there is shown at the bottom edge of the mask 3 a pair of driving cam surfaces 8 and 9 which are secured to the mask and are driven by the shaft I5. The rotating cams il and 9 are driven by motor I1 which may be operated in synchronism with the scanning pattern 4of the kinescope by means of the synchronizing circuit I4. A similar pair of synchronously driven cams 2i) and 2I, mounted upon the shaft I9, are also secured to the mask at the top edge and are driven by the motor I'I. A linkage mechanism indicated by the dotted line 22, mechanically couples the two sets of cams for simultaneous operation. Guides 23 are provided to confine motion of the mask to a single plane, thus causing flexing of the mask to relatively change the positions of the transparent sections T with respect to the color elements of the iilter 5.

It will be noted that the orientation of cams 8 and s is different from the orientation of cams 25 and 2l. Rotation of cams 3, 9, 20 and 2|, therefore, will simultaneously move and stretch the iiexible mask 3 in a complex oscillatory motion so that the transparent sections T of the mask 3 align themselves with different color elements of the filter 5 during the apparent continuous motion of the mask 3 across the face of the filter 5.

Some of the transparent a portion of two adjacent color elements of filter 5 at some positions along the mask. This is not objectionable, however, since the phosphor used upon the kinescope screen has a fast enough de- Cay time that no image will appear after the transparent section is moved out of registration with the single color being currently scanned. The transparent section corresponding in position to the vertical scanning position of the kinesc-ope beam will therefore at all times transmit only phosphorescent light of a single color corresponding to the desired color` of the component image portion being scanned.

The relative position of the cams, and accordingly the position of the mask 3 with respect to the color filter 5, throughout the complete scanning cycle may best be illustrated by reference to the curves of Figure 4. These may be considered as empirically determined curves for indicating the relative motion of the mask and filter when in operation in accordance with one particular motion cycle for field sequential operation. The curves may be used for designing the cams, which impart the flexing or stretching motion to the mask. However, other curves may be used to indicate different motion cycles, without departing from the scope of the invenion.

sections will overlap In the present arrangement, the motion im` parted to the mask is illustrated graphically by plotting a solid line curve showing the relative position of the center of. a transparent section at the bottom end of the mask with respect to the associated lter elements and a dotted line curve showing the relative position of the center of a transparent section at the top end of the transparent section of the mask with respect to the associated iilter elements. Thus, both the translatory and flexing components of motion are shown by relative positions of the transparent sections at each end of the mask with respect to the lter color segments during the entire cycle. l

For clarity in presentation the dotted-line curve is arbitrarily advanced on the abscissa or time scale. by ten divisions, whereby the part or" the dotted curve from t1 to tz corresponds in time to the part of the solid-line curve from Ti to T2. The lines along the abscissa labeled blue level, red level and green level indicate the position of the center of all the filter elements of each color with respect to the diiierent portions of the mask. Thus, when the solid line curve is at the red level it indicates that the transparent sections at the bottom region of the mask register with the lter element which passes red light.

The solid straight lines A--a, B-b, C-c, etc., connecting the two curves, indicate the progressive relative positions assumed by all the transparent sections along the stretched or ileXed mask. The straight lines proceed alphabetically at equally spaced time intervals throughout a complete scanning cycle or frame, which occurs between time T1 and T2 (or between t1 and t2), and which includes the sequential scanning of each component color or field. Thus, when the mask is in the single position indicated by line iii-e, for example, the bottom oi the filter passes blue, the middle section passes red and the top portion passes green.

Practice of this invention is not limited to the particular preferred relative motion for field sequential operation as shown by the curves of Figure 4. It is readily recognized that flexing of the mask or of the lter in accordance with other types of motion may be employed without departing from the scope of the invention.

Briefly following the iiexing motion o the mask throughout one color cycle in accordance with the preferred and illustrated mode of operation, it is seen that at position A-a the transparent portion of the mask at which the blue lter section is exposed is near the top end a of the mask. As the mask progressively moves to positions B-b, C-c, etc., the blue filter section which is exposed by the mask moves further toward the bottom of the mask B, C`, etc. The apparent continuous motion of the transparent section of the mask along the entire length of the lter, caused by the stretching motion, will in this manner cause bands of each color to be progressively transmitted by the iilter and positioned along the lter in synchronism with the vertically deiiected scanning beam in the cathode ray tube.

At position E-e the scanning cycle for green starts and proceeds in the same manner rorn top to bottom. Between the scanning cycles for the blue and green portions, the scanning cycle for the interspersed red lter is skipped. To reach the scanning position for green, therefore, the motion caused by flexing of the mask causes the transparent sections to proceed over the span of` two color lines. from. the initial scanning of: the; blue image.

Because the transparent mask section moves over a filter: element of. one color (red) at this por. tion oi the. scanning cyclev anyl remaining phosphorescence of the preceding color would dilute a portion of. the red. image, a phosphor should be used which will have av fast decay for the preceding color (blue). Normally, a white phosphor for' color operation comprises a group of phosphor layers which provide an overall White phosphorescencel rich in the red,v green and blue pri.- mary colors. Thus, a fast decay phosphor layer for the color blue may be selected to cause removal of the image from the phosphor before the transparent mask section has moved from the blue position to the red position, for the type or" filter motion. -described herein. Preferably the blue phosphor should have the faster decay time since less. noticeable flicker will. be introduced into the composite image than by a faster decay in the green phosphor. to which. the eye is more responsive. Thus, a good compromise may be reached in the preferred blue, red, green sequence to give the best operating results between a higher intensity, slow decay phosphor and noticeable image icker or color distortion.

At position J-:i the scanning cycle for red starts, and at the iinish of this cycle the entire color scanning process repeats itself by starting again with blue at the top of the mask in position O-o. Thus, the mask is irregularly stretched in an oscillatory motion such that, in one cycle of the oscillatory motion, a single transe parent section apparently traverses in succession the entire length of the color filter. During the traversal apparently the traveling transparent section only moves across color elements of a single component color. In this manner a band of color is transmitted by the lter and progresses along the iilter in synchronism with the kinescope vertical scanning pattern for the corresponding color field.

The cyclic iiexing motion of the mask and corresponding movement of the transparent sections therefore has substantially the same eiiect as a traveling transparent section smoothly traversing the entire length ofthe color iter. This is accomplished because, during substantially the entire color cycle, the transparent section .nea-r one end of the mask transmits a different color than the transparent section near the other end of the mask, as indicated by the straight lines A a, B-b, etc. of the graph. Each color transmission band then moves down the screen in synchronism with the vertically deflected scanning ray to provide improved held sequential operation Without continuous rotary motion of the iilter.

The cams 2Q and 2l at the top of the mask cause one color to be transmitted to the initial transparent element at the top of the mask as indicated by points o, etc. en the dotted line. Cams E and 9 likewise cause a different color to be transmitted by the last transparent element at the bottom the mask indicated by the points A, B, etc. for essentially the entire motion cycle. As the relative positions of the cani protuberances at the top bottom change, the tension of the masi: varies the entire stretches in accorda-noe .with Hookes law to give linear progression in the scanning ci each color b y the bands or" transparent mask sections, Therefore, intermediate portions upon the lines A-a, etc., which represent intermediate mask sections, transmit colors which are representative o colors on the graph located at the intermediate points along the lines. The mask is adjusted so that it is always under a slight degree of tension, even at the position E-e when the tension is least.

The tension is greatest in positions J-g and O o. Thus, vthe net change in stretch upon the mask if going from E-c to J-y' is in the order of three color filter element widths. The elements are initially spaced close enough together to resolve a single color into a complete image when viewed from the distance o a ew feet. Since this distance is very small compared to the overall mask length, there is little danger of exceeding the elastic limit of the mask at the maximum tension position, and therefore the choice of materials from which mask may be made is large.

In the present system the lines or color filter elements are placed substantially parallel to the horizontal scanning pattern oi the cathode ray tube. Thus the entire scanning line transmits the same color at all times, and the motion may be smoothly imparted without any additional. momentum caused by rotational motion. The motive force required is far less than that necessary to move an entire mask over the distance of one or two lines during the relatively short vertical nyback or blanking period oi the standard television signals. Not only does this provide for less complicated and more emcient motion mechanisms, but the noise oi operation is considerably reduced thereby.

It is possible to compress rather than stretch the mask or otherwise distort it to give proper color information. Also, the relative motion of the mask and color filter may result from either motion of the mask or of the filter. Therefore the invention comprises a color iilter for a television system having images presented in accordance with a predetermined scanning pattern. The filter provides color intelligence to the system by means of a plurality of relatively movable color iilter members, one of which is synchronously distorted to cause the color intelligence to follow the scanning pattern of the image. A system is thus provided for exposing a plurality of pattern combinations by simultaneously moving and fiexing at least one of a plurality of pattern presenting members to provide relative motion between the members and so present the desired pattern combination.

Having thus described the invention and its mode of operation, certain features of the invention which are believed illustrative thereof are defined with particularity in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A light lter for use in color television systems comprising in combination, a plurality of different selected component color strip-like elements of the same dimensions and arranged sequentially side by side in repeating groups, a

exible mask positioned in a plane adjacent to and parallel with the plane of said elements, said mask having alternate transparent and opaque sections, the transparent sections of which substantially correspond in size, shape and spacing with the size, shape and spacing of one of the said color elements, and means to irregularly stretch said mask to expose said elements with respect to the transparent sections of said mask in an oscillatory motion such that in one cycle of said oscillatory motion the plurality of adjacent elements of each selected component color is traversed in succession along the entire length of the lter by succeeding transparent .sections along the entire length of the mask, and wherein the traverse by said transparent portions with respect to said elements near one end of said mask is of a different color than at the other v'end of said mask during substantially the entire cycle.

2. In a television system of the type adapted to reproduce images in substantially their natural color by a process oi progressive scanning of an electron beam upon the iiuorescent screen of a cathode ray tube, means for presenting different component color image portions in sequence comprising, a plurality of different selected component color strip-like elements of the same dimensions and arranged sequentially side by side and in repeating groups, a iiexible mask positioned in a plane adjacent to and parallel with the plane of said elements, said mask having alternate opaque and transparent sections, the transparent sections of which substantially correspond in size, shape and spacing with the size, shape and spacing of one of said color elements, and means to irregularly stretch said mask to expose said color elements with respect to the transparent sections such that the full width of each transparent section of the mask exposes in succession each adjacent color element of the color sequence pattern thereby traversing substantially the full length of the lter in synchronism with the corresponding traversal of the electron beam upon the fluorescent screen of the cathode ray tube.

3. In a television system of the type adapted to reproduce images in substantially their natural color by a process of sequentially scanning over a plurality oi color rlelds, means for presenting diierent component color image representations in sequence comprising, a lter comprising a plurality of different selected component color striplike elements of the same dimensions arranged sequentially side by side and in repeating groups, a flexible mask positioned in a plane adjacent to and parallel with the plane of said elements, said mask having transparent sections which substantially correspond in size, shape and spacing to one of said color elements, means to distort said mask to cause relative motion between said mask and said lter and apparent traversal of said transparent sections causing a band of color to progress from top of the filter to the bottom in synchronism with the scanning pattern of the designated component color.

4. A system for progressively scanning portions of a multi-color image in sequential color steps' comprising in combination, means for presenting different scanned component color image portions in sequence, a color lter member for said image portions comprising a plurality of color elements arranged sequentially in repeating groups, a mask filter member having alternate transparent and opaque sections the transparent sections of which substantially correspond in size, shape and spacing with the size, shape and spacing of the color elements, one of said members being flexible, and means for distorting the iiexible one of said members in accordance with a predetermined oscillatory motion to cause relative motion between the members and to transmit light of only a given color by registering the color elements with the transparent sections in a predetermined sequence corresponding to the color image scanning pattern presented by said first mentioned means.

5. A device as dened in claim 4 Wherein the means presenting the image portions is a cathode ray tube, and the color portions are essentially lines positioned parallel to the horizontal scanning pattern of said tube.

6. A device as defined in claim 5 wherein the color lines are of such Width that they resolve into a complete image when viewed from the distance of a few feet.

7. A device as defined in claim 4 wherein eld sequential color scanning means is utilized, and adjacent elements of the same color are spaced so as to resolve into a complete image when viewed from the distance of a few feet.

8. A system as defined in claim 4 wherein the means presenting the image portions is a cathode ray tube, the tube has a phosphor corresponding to one color which has a relatively fast decay time, and the color sequence is chosen to provide less noticeable iicker in the composite image.

9. A light filter for use in a color television system comprising in combination, a color filter member comprising a plurality of dierent selected component color strip-like elements of the same dimensions and arranged sequentially side by side in. repeating groups, a mask lter member positioned in a plane adjacent and parallel with the plane of said first mentioned filter member, and one of said members being exible, means to irregularly stretch and move the flexible 19 one of said filter members in a pattern causing said color strip elements to be exposed in synchronism with the corresponding color intelligence of said system.

10. A filter as dened in claim 9 wherein the means to irregularly stretch and move the one filter member provides an oscillatory motion such that the adjacent color elements of each selected component color is traversed in succession along the entire length of the colorlter member by succeeding mask sections along the entire length of the mask lter member, and wherein color elements at both ends of the color lter member are exposed by said mask filter member and the color elements at one end of the color iilter member are of a dilTerent color than at the other end during substantially the entire cycle of oscillatory motion.

ALDA V. BEDFORD.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,386,074 Sziklai Oct. 2, 1945 2,415,226 Sziklai Feb. 4, 1947 2,457,415 Sziklai Dec. 28, 1948 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 589,345 Great Britain June 18, 1947 620,137 Great Britain Mar. 21, 1949 838,389 France Mar. 3, 1939 

